A New 'Variant Under Investigation' From Nigeria Has Been Detected In Canada

The variant is under investigation.
A Nigerian COVID-19 Variant Has Been Detected In Canada
ProvinceOfBC | YouTube
Contributor

On Friday, February 12, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced that a new Nigerian variant has been found in British Columbia. 

During Friday's press conference, Henry said the province has now confirmed 46 cases of "variants of concern" and an additional case of this newly discovered variant. 

Editor's Choice: This Super Simple Video Explains Who Can Get Canada's New Relief For Tax Debt (VIDEO)

We aren't entirely clear yet whether this variant also has increased transmissibility or causes more severe illness. Dr. Bonnie Henry

She referred to it as a "variant under investigation" instead of a "variant of concern" and noted that the case is a person in the Interior Health region.

Henry said the person had recently travelled from Nigeria and is currently in isolation.  

This Nigeria-associated variant is labelled B.1.525 and is under "ongoing surveillance" by the BC Centre for Disease Control. 

Henry reported 445 new COVID-19 cases on Friday along with 10 more deaths. 

“We are trending in the right direction, pushing our curve down, but slowly. And we need to ensure our success sticks, which means staying the course with our layers of protection and continuing to follow all of the public health restrictions and guidance," she urged. 

Lab teams are working in Canada and internationally to learn more about the Nigerian variant and how it compares to the variants originally detected in the U.K. and South Africa. 

NewsCanada
  • Britanny Burr
    Britanny Burr was a Staff Writer at Narcity Canada, who drove growth within Narcity's Western coverage and readership. Having lived between her hometown, Canmore, Alberta and Calgary, Montreal, Vancouver, and NYC over the past 10 years, she is obsessed with finding the best local hot spots. She holds a B.A. in English and has over six years of professional writing experience as Head Writer and Editor for YUL.Buzz in Montreal, and Creative Copywriter at JAKT in NYC. News by day, poetry by night — the written word is Britanny's nearest and dearest.

Lotto Max winning numbers for Tuesday, April 28 are out and there's a $55 million jackpot

Maxmillions are also up for grabs!

Air Canada is hiring for jobs that pay up to $44 an hour and offer travel perks

There's a "generous" travel program for employees and their friends and families

I went to Montreal without speaking any French and no one tells you these 5 things

I showed up with three French words and a lot of confidence.😬

I'm a Toronto local and I'm begging you (tourists) to stop doing these annoying things

Don't know what a "Toronto left" is? Take transit.

Davis Schneider calls for more life-saving naloxone in public

Davis Schneider's brother died of an overdose. The Blue Jay says naloxone can save others

Health Canada approves 1st generic version of Ozempic

Health Canada approves 1st generic version of Ozempic in the country

Canada's best employers were ranked and these are the top places to 'grow your career'

Where you work can make a difference in how you work, according to LinkedIn.

These government benefits have payment dates in May and some offer more than $500

You could get a lot of money!

8 things I learned while trying to rent a Toronto apartment that everyone should know

Learn from my mistakes!

One year later, two N.S. children still missing

One year later, RCMP saying little about disappearance of two Nova Scotia children